No slacking off

No slacking off

The holiday season is upon us. And so is the holiday weight gain. Chuck Barnard, national fitness director for Midtown Athletic Clubs, including the Palatine club, suggests you get proactive to keep your scale stable.

• Make an exercise schedule. Actually write it down in your calendar to remind yourself to go.

• Find a partner. Whether it's a friend or a personal trainer, having a workout buddy can mean the difference between hitting the gym or slouching on the couch.

• Get your family involved. Find activities to do together.

• Fit fitness into every day. Park farther from the mall and take the stairs instead of the elevator.

Now you're cooking:

Home chefs have an ace in the hole when it comes to physical activity. Thirty minutes of chopping, stirring and prepping burns about 100 calories for a woman who weighs 163 pounds or a man who is 150 pounds, according to the American College of Sports Medicine. If you cook dinner at home five nights a week, that's 500 calories you've burned off -- just in time for a weekend treat.

Remember this

Researchers at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine have discovered a brain protein's role in learning and memory that sheds new light into diseases like Alzheimer's.

Kalirin-7 acts like a personal trainer for your memory. When you learn something new -- someone's cell phone number, a new recipe -- kalirin bulks up the synaptic spines in the brain. The synaptic spines are the sites in the brain where neurons communicate. The bigger they get, the better the messages, said Peter Penzes, lead author of the study in the journal Neuron.

Kalirin's role helps explain why staying mentally active can delay cognitive decline as people age. "It's important to keep learning so your synapses stay healthy," Penzes said.